Grant offers homeless access to health care

Access to health care for sheltered homeless is being made possible through a grant received by The Wellness Coalition.

The Wellness Coalition applied for a $27,473 grant to hire a case manager who would visit homeless shelters and help residents enroll in an insurance plan and also apply for free medication. Funding for the project is through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through the city of Montgomery.

The case manager, who started work within the past week, will help people in shelters access a medical home that is either free or low-cost — and which would likely be through Health Services Inc., or Medical Outreach Ministries, said Cindy Bisbee, executive director of The Wellness Coalition.

"The homeless also will be helped applying to pharmaceutical companies for free medication," she said. "And they'll receive help applying for Medicaid or Medicare, or health insurance through the market place if they have sufficient income."

The city of Montgomery allocated more than $1.6 million in Community Development Block Grant funds (CDBG). The program grants federal funds through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to organizations to implement a number of community development, economic development, housing and social service projects.

Types of CDBG-funded activities include public services, code enforcement, new housing construction, relocation of tenants and property and housing rehabilitation.

CDBG-funded projects primarily benefit the very low, extremely low, and low-to-moderate income people or households. Regulations require that grantees expend at least 70 percent of its funds for activities that benefit this population.

Bisbee said the case worker will also provide chronic disease self-management education, such as for diabetes, heart disease, obesity and asthma.

"Also with that, is helping them set and achieve wellness goals, such as learning about better nutrition and better activity," Bisbee said. "Another part is getting a medical home, and help people have a place to receive their medical care and not have to go to an emergency room for that."

The Wellness Coalition

For more informationon The Wellness Coalition, or to help, call 293-6502 or visit online at www.wellness-coalition.org